Hamiltonians can expect road closures on Sunday to accommodate the annual Around the Bay Race, returning to the city for the 124th time.
The City of Hamilton says sections of York Boulevard, Bay Street and Burlingtong Street will be closed throughout the day:
- York Boulevard, Plains Road to Queen Street from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- York Boulevard, Queen Street to Bay Street from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Bay Street, York Boulevard to King Street from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Burlington Street (eastbound), Parkdale to Woodward, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
In addition, the York Boulevard on-ramp for Hwy 403 will also be closed from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
This annual 30-kilometre race is North America's oldest road race. The route takes runners from downtown Hamilton to Beach Boulevard towards Burlington, then North Shore Boulevard back to Hamilton for the finish line.
While not a Boston qualifier, the race website says it's a good preparation for a true marathon.
Runners could also sign up for a much shorter 5-kilometre course or run in groups of two or three, as a relay.
Dan Best, left, and Nathan Styles, right, are Hamiltonians who have been friends since their high school days. It's their first race together, and also the first time doing 15 kilometres each. (Flora Pan/CBC)
Dan Best and Nathan Styles, who have known each other since high school, are running the relay for the first time.
Both fairly new runners, the two men hover well over six feet and are participating in the two-person relay under the team name "The Lanky Bros."
"I was getting into running and i wanted to set a challenge for myself, so doing a race seemed like a good idea," said Best.
The race accepted 250 team registrations each for the two-person relay and the three-person relay.
Best and Styles will be running 15 kilometres each on race day, but they confessed they have never run the full 15 during practice.
"I'm reliant on the crowd to push me that extra bit," said Styles.
The race route is outlined in red. Two-person relays will be exchanging at the 15-kilometre mark, while three-people relays exchange after 10 kilometres each. (Google Maps)
Sunday's race will begin at 9:30 a.m. for the solo 30-kilometre runners and relay participants, while those running the 5-kilometre course will start at 9:45 a.m.
There are a number of places for spectators to get a good view of the race. One of them is the first relay point at the 10-kilometre mark near the ramp from Burlington Street to Woodward Avenue.
People can also catch runners at the 21-kilometre mark at Lasalle Park in Burlington.
